Congressman Raúl Grijalva has contracted his second case of COVID-19 since July 2020, despite being fully vaccinated and boosted.
In a statement Thursday, the 73-year-old Democrat from Tucson said he tested positive on Wednesday but is experiencing only mild symptoms so far.
“My staff and I will follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance on testing and quarantine procedures, including notifying those who may have been in close contact,” Grijalva said in his statement. “I urge Arizonans to get their vaccinations, booster shots and wear N95 masks or equivalent. We all have a role to play to protect our loved ones from COVID-19 and the risk of hospitalization, especially while Arizona is experiencing this surge.”
Breakthrough cases like Grijalva’s are on the rise as the result of the far more contagious omicron variant, said Dr. Sean Elliott, an emeritus professor who specializes in pediatric infectious diseases at the University of Arizona’s College of Medicine.
“I wish I could say it’s unusual, but it’s pretty common,” Elliott said.
COVID-19 vaccines have proven very effective at preventing severe disease and death, but like all vaccines, they are not 100% effective at preventing infection.
The shots also greatly reduce the chance of spreading the virus, experts say.
The congressman is isolating per CDC guidelines but would vote by proxy as needed, said Grijalva’s communications director, Jason Johnson. Starting Friday, the House will be in recess for a week.
Grijalva, who will turn 74 next month, previously tested positive for COVID in late July 2020, while he was in self-quarantine after possibly being exposed to the virus by fellow Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas.
It is unknown if Grijalva contracted the virus from Gohmert, but the two sat close together during a hearing of the House Natural Resources Committee that the Trump administration insisted be conducted in person.
The incident prompted House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., to impose a mask requirement on the House floor.
Grijalva later told the Arizona Republic that he experienced anxiety, discomfort, fatigue and days of soreness, but overall his first bout with COVID-19 turned out to be relatively mild.
Elliott said this second infection is an unfortunate reminder that even fully vaccinated people and those who have already had the virus can still catch and spread it.
“It’s a warning that we have to keep masking and distancing — all the things that we’re sick of doing, but we’ve still got to do,” he said.
